1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a cushion clip that is used in a vehicle. More particularly, the present invention relates to a cushion clip that is attached to a fixed member (e.g., a vehicle body) in order to receive a load of a movable member (e.g., a vehicle slide door) and to absorb impact caused thereby.
2. Description of Related Art
A known cushion clip of this type is taught by, for example, Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication Number 2008-196651. The cushion clip has a cushioning portion made of a soft material such as a thermoplastic elastomer (TPE), an attachment portion made of a hard material such as polypropylene (PP), and a connecting portion integrally formed with the attachment portion. The connecting portion is embedded (received) in the cushioning portion such that the cushioning portion can be integrated with the attachment portion. The attachment portion is inserted into an attachment hole formed in a fixed member (e.g., a vehicle body), so that the cushion clip can be attached to the fixed member.
In the known cushion clip in which the attachment portion made of PP is integrated with the cushioning portion made of TPE while the connecting portion integrally formed with the attachment portion is embedded in the cushioning portion, when a compression force is applied to the cushioning portion, an elastic deformation of the cushioning portion in a compressing direction can be received by an end surface of the connecting portion. As a result, a stress can be concentrated to the cushioning portion along an outer circumference of the end surface of the connecting portion. Therefore, when the cushioning portion is repeatedly elastically deformed, a permanent distortion can be produced in the cushioning portion along the outer circumference of the end surface of the connecting portion. The permanent distortion produced in the cushioning portion may lead to reduced durability of the cushion clip. Further, the permanent distortion produced in the cushioning portion can form a folding line in an outer circumferential surface of the cushioning portion. This may lead to an inferior appearance of the cushion clip. Thus, there is a need in the art for an improved cushion clip.